Financing & Factoring: A Conversation with Gary Wassner of Hilldun Corporation

We are thrilled to have Gary Wassner CO-CEO of Hilldun Corporation at our next Meetup.

The purpose of this event is to help you gain a better understanding of fashion financing and factoring. In our conversation, we will discuss:

What is factoring and how does it work When should a designer use a factor How much capital should a designer expect to have to run a business The fashion community hears about technology startups getting funding. How realistic is it to get funding from an investor for an emerging designer Budget allocations: production, marketing, sourcing, sales, etc... How to be smart with your money and what not to waste money on When working with retailers, how does the process work in terms of financing, payment, expectations The flow of the evening will be:

6:30 - 6:45 - Arrival & Networking

6:45 -7:30 - Conversation

7:30 - 7:45 - Q&A

7:45 - 8:00 - Networking

Read more about Gary below and follow him on Twitter at @Gary_Wassner (https://twitter.com/gary_wassner)

In the fashion industry, Gary Wassner, CO-CEO of Hilldun Corporation (http://bit.ly/14gW6Xa), known as the company behind many of Seventh Avenue's most prestigious fashion companies, has provided financing and factoring for many of America's most iconic designer labels. Derek Lam, Peter Som, Jason Wu, Maria Cornejo, Yeohlee, Alexander Wang, Nanette Lepore, Rebecca Taylor, Twinkle, Naeem Kahn, Zang Toi, Vivienne Westwood, Wes Gordon, Chris Benz, Mara Hoffman, Thom Browne, Betsey Johnson, Marc Jacobs and Alexis Bittar are only a few of fashion's finest that have benefited from the discerning eyes and business acumen of he and his business partner of twenty years, Jeffrey Kapelman.

Recently named one of Fashionista's 50 Most Influential People in Fashion (http://fashionista.com/2011/02/fashionista-50-the-most-influential-people-in-new-york-fashion/), Gary is also a member of the CFDA Advisory Board and a mentor for the CFI Incubator program, an advisory board member of Fordham Law School's Fashion Law Institute, as well as a member of Senator Gillibrand's Fashion Industry Working Group and a passionate supporter of the Save The Garment Center (http://savethegarmentcenter.org) movement and all causes related to supporting the Fashion Industry in NYC.

In addition to being a force in the fashion industry, he is a well respected fiction writer and children's book author. His GemQuest series: THE TWINS; THE AWAKENING; THE SHARDS and THE REVENGE OF THE ELVES is popular among sci-fi and fantasy readers. The fifth and final book in the GemQuest series, WHEN MONSTERS CALL OUT THE NAMES OF MEN, will be released the second half of 2013. One of his children's books, THE MYSTERY OF THE JUBILEE EMERALD published by Mondo Publishing, is available everywhere. The next two books in that series, THE CANDLE ROCK MYSTERY and THE MYSTERY OF THE PRESIDENTIAL PAPERS, were published in January of 2013. In 2012, he published ISABELLA CUCHARELLA, FASHION DESIGNER EXTRAORDINAIRE, a picture book for budding young fashion stars, 50% of the proceeds of which he donated to the CFDA Fashion Incubator.